Su Yao stood in the middle of the yard, her white clothes as white as snow, her purple eyes as calm as an ice pond. She looked silently at Old Lady Zhu who was kneeling on the ground and crying loudly.
"Ah He!" Old Lady Zhu slapped her thigh and wailed, "You believed her, you believed the devil's words! She's here to bring down our Zhu family. If you dare let her touch a hair on my head today, I'll crash into you and die!"
Zhu Shanhe's forehead was throbbing with blue veins, his face full of hesitation. He was a down-to-earth man, always respectful and filial to his parents, and he had never doubted the mother who had given birth to him and raised him. But now...
Su Yao's voice was still cold and clear: "Your mother died twenty years ago."
"You're talking nonsense!" Old Mrs. Zhu suddenly jumped up, pointing at Su Yao, tears streaming down her face: "I was alive and well, how could I die! You are harming our family!"
She didn't get angry, but slowly raised her eyes. Her tone was as calm as if she were reading from a medical book: "Your mother, Old Lady Zhu, was seriously ill with a cerebral hemorrhage twenty years ago and should have died at four in the morning. However, just as her life was about to end, a severely injured and dying demon forcibly took over her body."
Zhu Shanhe's eyes widened: "You said...my mother is a monster?"
"To be precise..." A talisman appeared in Su Yao's hand, and the shape of a centipede appeared in the firelight: "It's a thousand-year-old centipede monster."
"Nonsense! I'm not, I'm not a monster!" Old Mrs. Zhu tore at her hair, her hoarse voice like rust scraping against stone: "I'm your biological mother, Ah He! She's trying to sow discord between us!"
Zi's eyes were slightly cold as he continued, "Zhu Shanhe, twenty years ago, this centipede demon killed two Heavenly Masters while trying to overcome a heavenly tribulation, causing their souls to scatter. After failing to overcome the tribulation, he passed by your house and felt that the Zhu residence's feng shui was extremely yin and evil, making it perfect for hiding and recuperating. So he took over your mother's body."
"The demonic body forcibly merged with a mortal's flesh inevitably damaged his sea of consciousness. After successfully taking over the body, he partially lost his hearing and speech abilities. But in order to quickly repair his broken demon core, he took on the identity of Old Lady Zhu and went to find Wang Mei, the woman you were planning to marry."
Wang Meiru was struck by lightning and suddenly realized: "How do you know all this?!" Many memories flashed through her mind, and her heart felt heavy.
"Wang Mei, Old Lady Zhu is testing you by saying you're a second-time married woman with a daughter. She said if you're willing to make Xiaofeng deaf and dumb for three years, she'll believe you didn't marry Zhu Shanhe for money."
"Back then, Zhu Shanhe dug up fifty taels of gold in his own pigsty. Everyone in the village knew that Zhu Shanhe was a good candidate for a blind date. Old Mrs. Zhu lied, saying the gold was inherited from her ancestors. It was actually a trap set by the centipede demon. They wanted to create the image of Zhu Shanhe as someone who had made a small fortune, so that you would willingly marry into the Zhu family for the gift."
"In order to show your loyalty to Old Lady Zhu and to get the 300,000 yuan betrothal gift she gave you privately, you used the powder she gave you to poison Xiaofeng and make her mute. You thought it was a good deal for your daughter to be deaf-mute for only three years."
Wang Mei looked nervous and denied it vehemently, looking at Xiao Feng: "Mom didn't do that... Don't believe Su Yao! She's lying..."
"Mom, although I was only five years old at that time, I still remember you asking me a question. You asked me, if you were sick, would I exchange my health for it? I said yes." Xiao Feng felt a chill in his heart and said with great disappointment.
Su Yao said, "Xiao Feng, your mother asked this question in order to complete the ritual. Your birth date and time match that of Old Lady Zhu. The centipede demon needed your mother to ask this question in order to restore your hearing and speech abilities, so that you would willingly sacrifice yourself for him."
"A mere 300,000 yuan betrothal gift can make you sell out your own daughter! Wang Mei, you are so shameless!" Miaomiao was indignant for her sister Xiaofeng and didn't even bother to call her "Mom".
"What do you know? Xiaofeng's father died young, and he left behind a mountain of debts... Debt collectors come to my house every day to demand repayment, and they even threaten to sell my daughter if I don't pay!"
"I can't always look after Xiao Feng, right? I took the betrothal gift to pay back the money... I was forced to do so!"
"Do you think it's easy to marry someone with a burden?! If it weren't for me being pregnant at the time, Zhu Shanhe would have continued to delay marrying me..."
After hearing what Wang Mei said in person, Xiaofeng's legs became weak and she slowly walked to the corner and sat down without saying a word.
Miaomiao's face darkened. "Are you finally willing to tell the truth and stop lying?"
Wang Mei rolled her eyes at her. "Silly girl, are you satisfied now? I didn't know Xiao Feng would remain deaf and dumb... I regretted it too."
"She's all well now, so what's the point of bringing up the past?"
"After all, I am Xiaofeng's biological mother! I have never given her less food or clothing since she was a child. I have a clear conscience!"
Xiao Feng looked at Wang Mei and said dejectedly, "It's really meaningless. I just found out that my own mother doesn't love me... It's no big deal."
Miaomiao sneered, "Sister, she still has the nerve to say that she has a clear conscience towards you! She's really shameless!"
"Stop talking! Can't you see I'm still hanging?! Let me down now!!"
"Su Yao!! Hurry up, if you don't let me down, I will call the police to arrest you! Now, for the sake of my eldest sister, I will give you a chance to apologize..." Zhu Wanglong's face turned red, and all the blood in his body flowed to his brain. The veins on his neck bulged, he felt stars in his eyes, and breathing became more and more difficult.
Wen Wushang spoke lazily, his eyes grim: "You bastard, shouldn't you beg me? You haven't even learned human language yet?"
Su Ziyu walked behind Su Yao and said with emotion: "Sister, you are so kind. You have been giving them opportunities, but no one is really trying to atone for their sins."
At this moment, a solemn voice suddenly rang out from outside the door: "I am Master Zhang, a Taoist priest. I have come to protect the house and eliminate the evil spirits."
Everyone turned around and saw an old man with an immortal look walking into the courtyard. He was wearing a green Taoist robe and waving his whisk. His expression was mysterious and profound.
"Master, you're finally here!" Old Lady Zhu suddenly rushed over and hugged Master Zhang's legs tightly: "Please help my Zhu family! She is an evil spirit! She wants to destroy our Zhu family..."
Master Zhang glanced at Su Yao and snorted coldly, "As I expected, the fox demon has deceived its master and intends to devour his soul. The Zhu family's residence is filled with demonic energy, and the sin is grave!"
Su Yao raised an eyebrow, his tone still cold: "Are you sure you want to intervene?"
Master Zhang flicked his whisk and said, "I am the 72nd generation descendant of the Dragon Tiger Mountain sect. I shall slay all the demons and monsters!"
"Authentic?" Su Yao's lips curled up with a hint of sarcasm: "If you are truly an authentic disciple of the Dao School, how could you not even see that it is a centipede monster in front of you?"
Master Zhang's face darkened: "You are talking nonsense, a demon misleading the people!"
"Playing tricks." Su Yao smiled coldly, raised his hand, and took out a black gold compass. In an instant, the entire Zhu family courtyard was in turmoil, and Old Mrs. Zhu suddenly froze.
In an instant, her face visibly twisted, something seemed to wriggle beneath her skin, and the phantom of a centipede-like spine emerged behind her.
Zhu Shanhe was so frightened that he fell to the ground, his face turning pale: "No, impossible..."
"See?" Su Yao said calmly, "You saw it with your own eyes, and you still believe the cries of this monster?"
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